Internal-combustion engine.



G. H. HARRIS. INTERNAL GOMBUSTION ENGINE. APPLICATION 1111211 111:05, 1912.

1,096,595... Patented May 12, 1914.

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GEORGE H. HARRIS, or SYRACUSE. NEW YORK.

INTERNAL-COMBUSTION ENGINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

'Patented May 12, 1914.

v.appiieanon ined December 5, 1912. serial No. 735,074.

To all @elim/i it may concern:

Be known that I@ Gnoiuin HARius', a `itiz'en of the United States, residing at Syracuse, in tlie county' 'of' Onondaga and State"`o'f New ork, liave'ii'ivented certain i'ieiv ari'd ii's'efulI Improvements in Internat ACoinbnstion' Engines.y of which the followin4 is a'speeitication.

' his invention relates to improvements in internal' combustion engines, and has for its object to provide a novel',` simple and etleetive valve' inecl'i'anisn'i. `wherein a one-part valve of the pistoii type controls boththe intake and exhaust. l

"'A'Iiurtlier object is lo provide a valve for manner, but preferably comprises `al slot.

. which is preferably disposed at the upper end and at one side ot' the cylinder engines ot the class which is arranged to receive and hold the cinupression charge until the explosion'occurs.

'further object is to provide a valve i gear which is continuously rotated by the 'nia'in"cranlvshait, and other coperativc par-ts which are' arranged fo move'the valve iiiteriiiitteutly for controlling` the admission of'theiive-gas.' the .:onipression Aof said gas, and the exhaust of the dead or lburnt gas, the step by step `nioveineiits of the valve 't'akiii'c' )lace at refrular intervals correi-g e sponding tothe Working of the engine.

further' object is to provide means foi com 'lete'ly freeingthey cylinder of burned friises'liftei'leacii explosion, thereby lessenin-g'the danger 'of back-firing, and alsol pre` venting theaccumulation oi free carbon within the `working cylinder. 'The features and parts of the invention will] be understood from the detailed de- .seigiptio-n which"'folloivsfund by refereni'e'lto the a'c'eoni'panyinrr drawing which ioi'ins a Figure `l"is "a central vertical section through a four cycle engine; showingthe valve positioned foi'l the admission ot' the explosive' g'as." Fig. A2 `is'a similar section; showing the viilie in position to receive the charge 'ivhen conipresseii, Fig. 3 is a siinii lail sect-ion; show'ng'jthe position ot' theI c osed ai its upper and lower'ends. and is valve and' piston"atth'eendoi 'a coiiipi'es sion stroke. Figa #t is 'a' similar section: showi'ngthe valve in the exhaust position; also showing by full vand 'dotted lines the positions of `the piston iind'clini during' the exhaust stroke.

Similar vcharacters of Vreference are assiirnedto corresponding parts throughout 55 the several views;

(S represents the piston, and 7 the rod which connects the piston with the crank 4. Ihe cylinder is open at the bottomQand closed at the top 8, and is preferably ribbed at S) Ylor air-cooling' the top. The yoylir'id'er 5 may be cooled by any suitable nieansfas by water, by nieans of a jacket 10.

11 represents a port, which is employed for both the intake and the exhaust. The port 'il may be fashioned in any suitable 12 represents a threaded opening in the head 8`to receive the usual spark-plug or igniter (not shown).

in the resent invention, the intake and exhaust for the 'engine is handled by an auxiliary cylinder 13, which is preferably cast integrally ivith the inain cylinder a.' `Tlie cylinder 13 has a reduced opening 14 at'its top'to receive thc explosive-mixture. 'Both intake and exhaust areI controlled by ahollo` piston valve 15, comprising a cylinder which is i'eciproeatably disposed in the'cy lindrical part 13. `The valve 15 is'prov'ided rwith a port 16 which is disposed nearits l n upper end and faces the main cylinder. "The valve casing 13 is considerable longer than the valve l5 and extends above thecylirid'e'r so that the latter may be inoved iipivai'diy a 'sufficient distance to' bring the port 16 opposite the port 11. and at .the same time shut ofi' communication ot' said port xritli'the intake i4. 17 represents an exhaust. port which is disposed near the bottoni and at the opposite. side ofthe valve 15,*and this port ia adapted to register with a port 18 ot the casini?r 13 when the valve is in its cxtreme u )per or exhaust position. The valve 15 is upon n shaft 9,2, which parallels the main shaft 3 The Cain' shaft is preferably rotated by the infzin shaft 3, by means of spurgears 23 and 2e, the gear Q3 being; mounted upon the ninin shaft, While the gear 24E is mounted iipon the eem shaft. There my improved valve is applied to a two-cycle engine, the'diiving gear is preferably one half the size of the driven gear Q4. Under this arrangement the niniii shaft rotates twice 'While the @ein shaft rotates once. rPhe anni 2l is prefeieoly a S-step-oani, which is so arranged as to impart intermittent up Werd ino'veiiieiits to 'the Valve 15, which assunies three distinct positions during, each intake, explosion and eiihenst.

Fig. l shows the valve in its lowerinost or intake position. 2 shows 'the valve in its intermediate or compression and iiiing position. ind Ll. shows the valve in the highest or exhaust position. Eis explained. the earn 2i only employed for raising the valve intermittently from the lowest to the highest position. To return Vthe valve 'from the exhaust to the intelfe posit-ion, l provide e coil spring 25 which surrounds the iodl), the upper end oit the spring hearing' against the underside of the cap 20. While the lower end olif the spring engages a Washer oi' stop 26 which is held in place by n.V pin 27. The lower middle port-ion of rod 'i9 supported 'and is guided by :i cylindrical bushing 28 which pierces the top of the esse 2. rthe up per enel of the hnshingis eounterhored to receive the spring The operation of my improved engine is es follows: Referring first to l, the valve `15 is in its lowest position, he lower enti oi" the 'vein/e roti it is in engj nient with the firststep ofthe ouin., and. taie piston in its highest position. There is new e sage for the lire from the intake chemA hei1 le to the main cylinder 5 by Weyloi' the port li. The iirst downward movement of the piston 5 draws the chere of the live ons into the inem cylinder.. .od the time th io'wei' end its siziole, will hei-fe moved one piston 6 ieeolies 'i (see 2, the e tiert-ei of turn and thelower end oi th 1 1 a 1 v vaiveqoo 9 es tron. the l io second step he anni, Whioii foi-ee valve l5 'opi/'w ily end brings the unifi end of the port. iti opposite 'the port il, sind et the seine tiine the upper end of the vulve outs the geestige 'to 'the intake ehiin'ihei 14'; The veli/'e will then reniein in the letter posit-ion while 'the piston G makes the next up and down strokes. The next np- Werd Amovement oi the piston forces the charge of the new gas ont of the cylinder 5 through the ports 11 and 16, :ind compresses l 1 l l i l nie m messes turn, sind :it the enel of this` movement-the rod 1 9 moves on the third step Z1 of 'the Cain, Whieh lifts the viilve 15 to its third or highest position which brings the botto-m of 7 the pot 'lo opposite the por opposite the port 18. @Wing to the arrange nient et the een: sui-fece 2l', the 'vnlve'l 'wili remain in its uppermost position While the piston moves upwardly for 'oon'npletiiig the second npstiolre, end by this lest upward movement the piston forces all oi" the deed. ont of the Cylinder 5 into the vulve '1.5, ifroin which it exhzmists iii n roadyinziiiner thi-oir; toe ports lT and. i8. When the piston l5 enehes the dotted line position. the @ein 2l also will have moved to the dotted line position, shown in Fig. l sind then the valve l5 Will suddenly drop hy its own weight, sided by the/ power ot' the spring 25, to its lowerinost oi' starting position, :is shown in Fig. l. This latter operation oit' the valve i5 ents oi the exhaust opening i8 sind reopens the port il for the passage of the new from ohziinloer le. into the cylinder The arrangementoi the @amis such that the grevitating movement. of the Velvezieeoinlilished instantaneously et the end of the exhaust stroke iiiidhefi'iro the piston time to start downwardly on its suction stroke. 0W to the ersengeinent of the Valve to the iirst position et the encloi2 enoli exhaust stroke, whatever burned gas still i'emeins in the valve shut entirely 0E, and the incoming new ini? nre enters n. comperativeljlf @leer sind elem `Vlinder. The new nre inneh lower than lo effort desirable cooll not the ease i'l' the "i 'with the hot burnt .o i miners und users of inter- Vnel combustion engines lieve e: yiieneed :L goed le-n.1 of tronliie, on account of the failinie to entirely i'iee the cylinder :troni deed n' hnrnt gases sitter each explosion. .lhe presence oi hot deed ges in the cylinders :it the time fthe new enters, not only Weekens the explosive mixture, which reenlts in loss of power, lont there is s. constant danger oi" the new Charge exploding' pi'en'intnrely.

't l1, and et the, ne the port opening 17 is ormightfv l5, Wh eli suddenly drops from the the seid charge in the valve 15 (see Fig. 3). eliminated these dangers, by iitilizninlgJ the' The capacity oi the hollow Valve 71.5 should exhaust stroke of the piston' Yfor forcing all he about one-third that of the main cylinder, i of the dead eases from the cylinder into the which allows the explosive charge to he sdel hollow voire, and then hyl providing oi' iil'n the present invention, i have enirely l the end of the compression stroke,

Afterward, when the engine gets hot, this free carbonjgnites land burns to ashes, and most of the ashes pass ofi' with the exhaust. It often happens however, that some of the ashes work downwardly between the piston and cylinder and score and otherwise in- 'ure these parts.' In the present device `this atter trouble is almost entirely obviated, first, by\ driving practically all of the dead gases out of the cylinder, as described, and second, by `allowing' the piston at each upstroke to travel to within approximatel one-eighth of an inch of the head 8, whici insures the self-cleaning of the sides of the cylinder, and thus prevents the accumulation of enough free carbon'to cause any trouble, even though the engine is operating at a low temperature.

in its actions.

"The valve gearing herein shown and dcscribed is extremely simple and itis positive It is practically noiseless, and is very effective in its operation.

The provision of the hollow piston valvey comprising but a single part, which serves:

as the compression chamber for holding the charge until it is exploded, obviatcs the necessity for the usual cams, springs and other valve-operating parts usually em )loyed for controlling the admission and t 1e exhaust of explosive engines of the class. Fur thermore,by providing for the compression of the explosive as inside the valve instead of in the main cy inder, and by utilizing the large hollow interior of the valve for the passage of the exhaust, the space between the piston and the cylinder-head is reduced to asmallfraction of an inch, thus allowing the cylinder to befreed of all oi. the burned ordead ases at the end of each exhaust stroke. he valve is also perfectly balanced and requires very little power to operate it.

The timing of the valve movements, whether eii'ected by the cam pr b v the spring, is

positive and accurate, and permits the ad-- mission and exhaust to take place at exact predetermined intervals with the desired effectiveness. The valve and its operating mechanism are so simple and positivc that little or no adjustment of the parts is required once they are assembled ready for operation, and there is less danger of any of the parts becoming disarranged during the workin(y of the engine, than in any other style oiiengines known to me.

'Having thus described my invention, what l claim as new and desire to secure by Letters .,latent, ism

1. In an internal combustion engine, the combination of a cylinder, a piston in Said cylinder, a valve chamber arrangedadjacent said cylinder and connected thereto by a port, a hol'lou reciprocating valve in .said

chamber for controlling the admission and exhaust, saidvalve having `an opening communicating with said port, a valve gear comprising a cam and a rod for operating said valve in one direction intermittently for positioning the opening in said valve for receiving ,the gas to be compressed und alsoing an opening adapted to register with said port, a valve `ear comprisingr a cam and a rod for operating said valve in one direction intermittently for positioning the opening in said valve for receiving thc gas to be compressed and also the burnt gas to be exhausted, and means copcrating with said cam for effecting thc gravitation ot' said valve in the opposite direction.

3. In an internal combustion cnginc, the combination of a cylinder, a valvc chamber arranged parallel to said cylinder, a hollou reciprocating valve for controlling the admission and exhaust of gases to and from thc said cylinder, meansl for positioning .said valvc tor allowing explosive gas to cnicr said cylinder, means t'or positioning said valve ior allowing said gas to be compressed within the valve, means for positioning said valve so as to allow the burnt gases to be forced from said cylinder back into said valve for exhausting said gas, and means for restoring said valve to thc first position ready for a subsequent charge of the explosive gas.

l. ln an internal combustion engine, the combination oi a c,\'lindcr, a piston in said cylinder, a crank-shaft for operating said piston. a valve chamber adjacent and parallcl to said cylinder and connected thereto by n port. a hollow piston vulve in said chamber adapted to bc held by gravity below the said port for permitting the passage of live gus from said chamber to saiil cylinder, a valve-gear comprising a cam driven by the crank-shaft. and a rod connected to the 'e adapted to lift the valve intermittently or bringing the valve into position to receive the compression charge, andjlalso to receive llt . plosion, tating ofthe valve to its position below the exhaust from the cylinder after each exsaid port.

The combination oi' a cylinder, a piston `in said cylinder, a hollow reciprocating valve controlling the admission and exhaust of the gases to and from the cylinder, said valve having a port facingthe cylinder and an eX- haust port in its opposite side, a chamber for said valve arranged adjacent .the cylinder and connected thereto by a port., said chamber having an intake opening at its top and an exhaust opening near its bottom, a valvegear for operating said valve upwardly step by step for permitting the compression of the live gas within said valve in advance otl the. explosion, andyfor permitting the dead gases to be forced back into said valve after the explosion, .for scavenging the cylinder, and means for effecting the gravitating of said valve from its uppermost position to its lowermost position for the admission of al new charge oi' live gas.

(l. In an internal combustion engine, the combination of a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder, a crank-shaft for ,operating said piston, a valve chamber adjacent and parallel to said cylinder and connected thereto by a port, a hollow piston valve in said chamber adapted to be held by gravity below the said port. for permit-ting the passage of live gas from said chamber to said cylinder, a valve-gear comprising a cam driven by said cranleshat't and a rod connecting with said valve adapted to li'lft said valve in termittently for lirst cutting olithe admission and allowing the piston to compress the live gas within said valve, and then for permitting the piston to torce the dead gas back into said valve for scavenging the cylinder, and means for moving said valvel to its lowermost position for reopening the said port for the admission ot' t'nc live gas.

7. The combination of a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder, a valve chamber adjacent said cylinder and connected thereto by a port, a hollow reciprocating valve in said chamber, said valveI adapted to be held by gravity in position to allow live to pass from said chamber into said cylinder, a cam adapted to raise said valve for cutting ott the admission and for allowing the piston to compress said 4gaswithin the valve, said cam adapted to raise said valve a second time for permitting the dead gas to be forced back and means for effecting the gravi 1 into said valve for scavenging the cylinder,

and means for effecting the gravitation ofl said valve tov the first position ready for a subsequent admission.

8. ii cylinder, a valve chamber connected' to said cylinder by a port, said chamber having an intake opening inits top andan exhaust opening near its bottom, a hollow reciprocating-valve in said chamber having an opening adapted and having an outlet opening adapted to register with said exhaust opening, means for moving said valve in said chamberfzfor allowing explosive gas to pass from said chamber to lsaid cylindci'means for moving said valve to bring one of its openings oppo site said port to permit the compression .of

said gas within said valve, and means for moving said valve for permittingthe burnt gases to 'pass through the valve and through said outlet and exhaust openings.

to connect with' said port 9. In an internal combustion engine, a cylinder, a piston in said cylinder, means for operating said piston, a valve chamber connecting to said piston valve in said chamber adapted to be held by gravity below said port for. allowing live gas to pass from said chamber into said cylinder, means for raising said valve at the'l end of the suction stroket'or bringing the valve into position to receive the com ression charge, means for raising said valQve a second time at the end of the explosion stroke for permitting the exhaust to pass through said valve and said chamber, and means for lowering said valve at the end of the eX- haust stroke for restoring said valve to its position below said port.

l0. A. valve mechanism for controlling the admission and exhaustot an engine, comprising a cylindrical valve chamber, a hollow piston valve moveable in said chamber, said valve having a port facing the cylinder of the engine, a valve-gear comprising a cam and a rod for operating said valve in one direction tor positioning the port in said valve for receiving first the gas to be compressed and then the burnt gas during the exhaust, and means for operating said vulve in the opposite direction by a single movement.

ln testimony whereof I aflix my signature in presence ot two witnesses.

GEORG-E H. HARRIS.-

lVitnesses 2 f HOWARD V. RULisoN, Hanny DnWaLmion.

@o cylinder by a port, a hollow 

